Progress report on youth justice plan welcomed

The report for 2014/15 outlines “significant progress” in implementing the Action Plan under each of its five high-level goals:

An inter-agency implementation team comprised of An Garda Síochána, the Irish Youth Justice Service, Tusla, the Probation Service, the Irish Prison Service and the Oberstown Children Detention Campus is overseeing implementation of the plan.

In a statement, the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) welcomed the progress made while voicing “serious concern” about the high number of young people who continue to be detained on remand.

Fíona Ní Chinnéide, the IPRT’s acting executive director, told ILN: “Children and young people have the highest reoffending rates, but they also have the highest capacity for positive change and desistance from crime given the right interventions. This is recognised in the Children Act 2001, which places emphasis on alternatives to custody for children.

“IPRT strongly welcomes recent investments by the Departments of Justice and Equality and of Children and Youth affairs in diversion, mentoring, case-management, bail support schemes and other more effective approaches to offending by young people.

“However, the ongoing issues at Oberstown remain a serious concern. High rates of detention on remand, inconsistency in the separation of remands from sentenced children, insufficient access to school and activities, are all contributing to a less stable environment.

“It is crucial that all parties involved continue to engage with the various review processes currently underway, and that the needs and rights of children detained remain at the centre of these discussions.”